Renegade Lost

Renegade Star #4

by J.N. Chaney, Luke Daniels (Narrator)

A lost ship. An unknown civilization.

The Renegade Star is stranded, its engines totally shot, surrounded by the unknown. Floating in the dead of space, they receive a strange transmission from a nearby planet, warning them to stay away or face the consequences.

When the message mentions how this world belongs to Earth, the lost cradle of humanity, Captain Jace Hughes knows he has no choice but to investigate.

With an endless snowstorm, bloodthirsty animals around every corner, and no sign of any colonies or people, the mission won't be an easy one.

Good thing they sent in the Renegade.

Experience a sprawling galactic tale in this fourth entry to The Renegade Star series. If you're a fan of Firefly, Battlestar Galactica, or Leviathan Wakes, you'll love this epic, space opera thriller.

Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Audiobook, Science Fiction Fantasy, Space

Audible Audio

First published January 25, 2018

About the author

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Reviews

[✘✘ Sarah ✘✘ (former Nefarious Breeder of Murderous Crustaceans) · Rating 4 out of 5]

· Book 1: Renegade Star ★★★★
· Book 2: Renegade Atlas ★★★★
· Book 3: Renegade Moon ★★★★
· Book 5: Renegade Fleet ★★★★
· Book 6: Renegade Earth ★★★★
· Book 7: Renegade Dawn ★★★★
· Book 8: Renegade Children ★★★★
· Book 9: Renegade Union ★★★★
· Book 10: Renegade Empire ★★★★
· Book 11: Renegade Descent ★★★★
· Book 12: Renegade Rising ★★★★
· Book 13: Renegade Alliance ★★★★
· Book 14: Renegade Evolution ★★★★
· Book 15: Renegade War ★★★★
· Book 16: Renegade Peace ★★★★

[Choko · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best of the books so far!

[Empress Reece (Hooked on Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars...

I was going to summarize the plot myself but every sentence I came up with made the story sound cheesy and did it absolutely no justice so I'll let you guys just read the blurb and leave it at that. : )

This is a great series if you just want pure entertainment. It's lots of fun, tons of action and the characters, especially Jace and Siggy, the ships A.I. will make you laugh.

If you like audio books the narration is really good. Publisher's Pack #1 contains books 1 & 2 and Publisher's Pack #2 contains books 3 & 4.

[Stephanie Runion · Rating 5 out of 5]

The latest installment in the Renegade series is fast paced and demanding. It pulls you along with the characters on their wild flight for survival. A fun quick read that is hard to put down.

[Amber J (Thereadingwitch) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one had its moments. I enjoyed it. It's a fun small read. I'll probably keep on with the series.

[Meenaz Lodhi · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fascinating roller coaster ride! Wow! Chaney has outdone himself, again! I feel humbled with his creative imagination! Looking forward to the next installment!

[Ms. Just One More Book (Kris Miller) · Rating 5 out of 5]

After the last battle with the Union fighter ship, The Galactic Dawn, Jace, Abby and a small part of the crew from The Renegade Star are floating adrift in deep space. Their ship is damaged and with no way to reconvene with the Titan, they are lost. When a cryptic message is received by a nearby planet stating that it belongs to the long-lost planet of Earth, Jace knows they have to investigate. Unfortunately, he wasn’t planning on the planet trying to kill him. A roller-coaster ride without the brakes, J.N. Chaney’s latest installment features killer beasts, man-eating plants, and an array of other dangerous scenarios, where one misstep can be fatal on this deadly planet. More of earth’s mysterious history is unlocked, with chilling answers to its secret past. Fast-paced, filled with cunning twists and turns, and of course, action-packed scenes, RENEGADE LOST is by far, the best yet in the series.

[Katyana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is just a fun, simple, space opera-ish sci-fi read. It's very light on the science and tech, and the books themselves are short reads that feel very much like serials.

I'm enjoying the series a lot, and blitzing through it.

[Shawnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was another exciting installment with Jace and crew fighting hybrid monsters on an icy planet and the usual fast-paced space battles.

[Veronica · Rating 5 out of 5]

New friends, old enemies...

Jace and crew are out of the frying pan and into the fire! As always, Jace is stirring things with the Union and running as he fights to fight another day. Not exactly strategic retreats. Relationships between the characters are growing, and Lex is adorable as always.

The series presents an interesting philosophical/ethical puzzle to ponder. I’m enjoying the underlying ethics that are not boldly stated, but mentioned almost in passing as as an incidental to the main story. I hope to see this unfold more in future books in the series.

[dennis barron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Renegade Lost. J.N. Chaney

Captain Jace's perilous journey continues. He's a Renegade, a privateer, but he is forming an extremely strong attachment to his crew. Actually their now his family. His quest to find Earth protect his friends along with the inhabitants of another planet lend this novel to greater heights! Enjoyed immensely!!

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a ride! I'll be honest the last book in the series wasn't my favorite. That caused me to go into Lost with some trepidation. Well, that ended up not being an issue. I read the entire book in 2 days! :-D 

I think I've fallen in love with every new character accept for Dressler. I don't hate her as much now but I still don't trust her. Lucia & Josef are adorable.

Oh & the butt kicking!! I can never get enough of fight scenes in space & Brigham got what he deserved. I wish I had a little triangle star fighter. ;-) 

As always, excellent world building and descriptions. I lived in MI too many years and still think brrr more often than not. I certainly couldn't live on that planet. :-o 

Perfect ending and can't wait for the next book. :-) 

My star ratings include these 5 elements:
1★ story line
1★ engaging characters
1★ use of world building/descriptions
1★ narration or editing
1★ the ending

[BrettHowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't normally write reviews for the books I read, but had to take a moment to express how much I really enjoyed the Renegade Star series!

I came upon these books by pure chance and almost brushed by them due to the cover art. I felt they had the 'tween sci-fi' vibe to them. As the saying goes though: never judge a book by its cover - and that definitely rings true for these ones.

If you're not into hearing 'bad' language or smatterings of fairly extreme violence, then this won't be for you.

If you're into things like: fun, space, laughing, excitement, swearing, coffee, brains on the wall, great banter, A.I., worm holes, action, etc, then give it a read.

Note: I listened to the audiobooks and Luke Daniels does a perfect job bringing these characters to life. As he normally does with his narrations.

[Rebecka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Each book of this series feels like an episode or arc of a TV-show. Mostly action scenes and adventures across the universe with some catchy dialogue, romance and flashbacks thrown in there to round things out. For me, this series is light-hearted joy with lots of likeable characters even if you don't have much time to get to know them during the first four (short) books.

Also, the narrator of the audiobooks does a good job.

[Marianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jace and Amanda have lost the Titan.

The Titan was sent out of the fight. Amanda and Jace had cut another hole in the slipstream but a bomb broke the slipstream and they ended up over an old base. I'm their hunt of the base they find monsters and people who still lived on the base. Please continue to follow the adventures!!

Read and enjoy.

[J.R. Handley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fun series! It was so amazing that I blasted through the series and forgot to write individual reviews. I'll be posting a review of the entire series on the page for book one, but I didn't want to keep my enthusiasm to myself. So, I’m sharing this ringing endorsement of the series, here, on the individual book pages. They were all epic in their own right, though there were times I thought I might have a heart attack during the action scenes! And can we talk about how awesome the narrator was? Wow, just wow! Overall, this series was a fun read and I was able to gloss over the near-death experiences!

My full review for this series doesn't fit, so read it here: https://jrhandley.com/2020/04/10/book...

My Overall Thoughts:
Okay, let’s get into the weeds on this one! I’ve organized my overall assessment by putting the stuff I didn’t like first so we can end on a high note. I also want to be clear that I really loved this series overall, it’s why I plowed through the audiobooks so quickly that I had to write a series review instead of an individual one for each of the six novels that make up The Renegade Star Series.

Alright, let’s rip off the band-aide and dive in. There were many parts that I wasn’t thrilled with in this series. First, the lack of details about the world was disheartening. I’m a guy who prefers all of the details, and I wasn’t given that in this series. This is a different type of book than I usually read, more pulp than anything, so some of that can generally be addressed by the fact that I’m not his ideal audience. However, I wouldn’t be fair if I didn’t mention that this was something I didn’t particularly like.

Another issue with the books was the profanity. I’m aware that the books description out a warning about the crude language. That normally bothers me, however, when you’re hooked on the fast-paced story, you want to listen every chance you get. I couldn’t do that if my kids were around, so this is more of an annoyance than anything because I went in with eyes wide open. Again, it wasn’t the profanity itself so much as the way that limited my ability to listen to the audiobooks. Luckily, this book is in the Kindle Unlimited program, and you can read it for free if you hit a patch where your rug rats won’t give you room to breathe.

I chose this book because the covers and the premise sounded entertaining, and I wasn’t disappointed. However, this book was very much a pulp novel and didn’t give me a lot to sink my teeth into. As many of you know, I’m the kind of reader that wants all the details in the novels I read. Some of this is just my own oddities, but I really like the little descriptions of the world that flush it out for me. I don’t just want to know that the character fired a blaster, I want the make and model. Again, some of this is just my preference, so this lack of detail was annoying, but not so much that I couldn’t keep reading because I obviously blazed through the series.

Another minor announcement I had was the lack of proper naval terminology. The main character calls the bulkheads walls and calls the decks a floor. I grew up in a Navy town, so hearing vessels using proper terminology always catches my attention. However, these traditions could change in the future, so this is really just nitpicking for the sake of my review.

My one major complaint about the story, aside from like details, was the character’s lack of reaction to killing. I’ve been in situations where you were required in someone else’s life, thank you Iraq, and there is always an emotional response to the action. I did not feel like the main character, Jace Hughes, ever felt remorse for the people he killed. It was just the thing he did, and then he’s callously shrugged it off. The combat veteran, this bugs me, but I’m sure most readers would never notice this.

Alright, now let’s talk about the happy things! One of the things that I liked about the series was the way characters grew as the story developed across the 13 novels. This is an area where the author grew as a creator, and it showed. I can’t really say anything else about the specific category because that would give spoilers, but trust me, it’s worth waiting for the big reveal later in the series.

Another area that struck me with this series was the audio narration. I loved this audiobook, Luke Daniels gave one of his trademarked top-notch performances. My only complaint in this arena was the way the main character socked on hard candy. However, this was more about the author’s characterization and how it translated to audiobooks, but it was about Luke’s performance. However, if especially noticeable in the morning and audiobook format. Despite that one minor complaint, this audiobook was a rollicking good adventure! Seriously, if you weren’t already hooked on Luke, this book would get you there! This was one of the many areas where this series really shined for me.

What did shine was the amazing premise of this book series. This definitely hit on all of the tropes that I love about science fiction, but not in a way that felt derivative. He carried it out in a way that somehow became uniquely his own thing. I found shades of the short-lived Firefly television show and the anime Outlaw Star that inspired it. There was also a Star Wars meets Indiana Jones element to this series, which kept you glued to the edge of your seat, waiting to see what happens next. Oh, and some of the reviewers called the series a mash-up of Andromeda and Battlestar Galactica. I agreed with them, though I didn’t see it at first. Once I read the review, the comparison was obvious!

If I haven’t said it enough, I REALLY loved the basic premise of this series. The concept of a grand adventure, trying to solve the mysteries of the universe, struck the right chord for me. It was very much. The Da Vinci Code in space, which I really liked. The fact that it was written in first person made you much more connected to the adventure, which I really appreciated. All of this combined, and you end up with a series of books that are a lot of fun to read. Seriously, it’s pulpy popcorn comfort food. Except you won’t regret eating it, because it’s calorie-free.

One of the overarching themes of the series that I enjoyed was the classic story of good versus evil. This was your typical David versus Goliath story except you had blaster since the slingshots. While the main character wasn’t quite the everyman, he was close enough that you ended up rooting for him and cheering as the bad guys get taken down a peg or two. There’s a Union officer whose face you want to smash in, but luckily Jace wants to do the same thing, and so you get a vicarious thrill of living for him. Isn’t that why we read fiction in the first place?

Oh, and I really loved the way Chaney explained his science of faster than light travel (FTL). It had just the right amount of Handwavium to keep me happy. Because of the structure of the story, he never felt let down by the lack of a more detailed explanation of how the science works. Instead, you have a character who doesn’t know and so can’t tell you. This is one of the beauties of the first-person narration done right!

Finally, I thoroughly enjoyed the more direct language that the author chose to use. It had a very Tom Clancy-esq vibe with simple words that avoided the tendency towards a pretentious use of big words, whether they were needed or not. It made it possible for Luke Daniels to give the stellar performance that he did with his narration, which I obviously loved. I know this style of writing isn’t for everyone, but it was something that I thoroughly enjoyed.

I wish I could gush more about the series, but I can’t think of ways to do this justice without giving spoilers. So… have I hinted that I enjoyed this universe yet? Good, I want it to be obvious! So, to wrap this bad boy up, I loved this series. Each one of these novels was at least 75,000 words long, about what you expect from the genre. Despite the length, each book felt like a quick read. If you didn’t know how long each novel was, you could almost imagine them as short stories. This is because they were so engrossing that the reader loses track of time while they temporarily live in the story. The author definitely made me want more from this universe, and I’ll definitely be reading the follow-on series that are already available.

In conclusion, I was hooked from the first page/minute! JN Chaney wove the action into this fun space opera romp that made me lose track of time. Basically, he had me hooked from the beginning and kept it going throughout the whole series. These are books that I would happily recommend, and an author I will definitely read again. While I don’t see myself diving more into the pulp side of the house, I don’t regret swimming in this pool of awesomesauce! Buy these novels! But hey, it’s easy to spend someone else’s money! I give these books a 5 out of 5 grenades!

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

My Reading Log
Plot Summary
Jace Hughes and his crew are stranded in uncharted space after a catastrophic accident leaves the Renegade Star crippled. Desperate to survive, they encounter a derelict alien station that may hold the resources they need—or doom them entirely. As they delve into the station's secrets, tensions rise among the crew, and Abigail’s abilities begin to draw dangerous attention. With the Order of the Nexus still hunting them, Jace must navigate the perils of both the station and his own doubts to find a way back to the fight and uncover the truth about their mission.

Characters
Jace Hughes - The determined captain whose leadership is tested as his crew faces isolation and growing threats.
Abigail Pryar - The enigmatic girl whose powers evolve further, becoming both a boon and a risk to the crew.
Sigmond - Jace’s AI companion, who struggles to maintain the ship’s systems while providing insights about the alien station.
Eliza Lobo - A seasoned bounty hunter whose resourcefulness and combat skills are critical for survival in the hostile environment.
Dr. Thea Morlin - The crew’s resident scientist, whose expertise in alien technology plays a pivotal role in deciphering the station's mysteries.
Commander Tyrn - The relentless Nexus officer whose pursuit of Jace’s crew creates constant danger, even in the depths of uncharted space.
Vrex - A mysterious alien survivor aboard the derelict station, whose true motives remain unclear.

Quotes
"Being lost doesn’t mean you’re beaten. It just means you haven’t found the way yet." - Context: Jace encourages his crew to persevere despite the overwhelming odds against them.

"Some things are better left forgotten, but that doesn’t mean they’ll stay buried." - Context: Dr. Morlin warns the crew about tampering with the alien station's technology.

"The stars are full of monsters—some hide in plain sight, and others are waiting for you to stumble into their lair." - Context: Sigmond reflects on the dangers of space as the crew uncovers the station's dark secrets.

[Xavier Marturet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Among so much science fiction focused on scientific and existential problems, and the barrage of post-apocalyptic works (with or without zombies), or war conflicts in space, it is pleasant to find a saga of space adventures.
I only find that in this fourth installment, as in the previous ones, the focus is too much on the protagonist captain Hughes and important secondary characters like Alphonse or Ely remain in the background.
My congratulations on the audiobook version in Spanish. Very professional in the first 4 books.

Entre tanta ciencia ficción enfocada en problemáticas científicas y existenciales, y el aluvión de obras postapocalípticas (con o sin zombis), o de conflictos bélicos en el espacio, resulta agradable encontrar una saga de aventuras espaciales.
Sólo encuentro que en esta cuarta entrega, igual que en las anteriores, el foco está demasiado centrado en el protagonista, el capitán Hugues, y quedan en segundo plano personajes secundarios importantes como Alphonse o Ely.
Mis felicitaciones por la versión audiolibro en castellano. Muy profesional en las 4 primeras entregas.

[Chris Grant · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was good , I can see how the overall story is coming together , I wasn't as into this book as the first 3. It took me a few extra days to get into it, not sure that was the books fault as I was very busy so I got to it when I could. I have downloaded book 5 but will take a break and read one or 2 others before continuing. I think my brain is only good for trilogies sometimes or im ready for another story by there time I get there. All in all good book.

Cons:
The only thing I wish was that this famous general who has been chasing them since book one has no dialogue, neither do the sarkonians. Its hard to be scared of the bad guy when he always loses to Jace I each book. The general isn't scary and gets his ass handed to him regularly . The sarkonians are sort of there to add depth to the battles but if they weren't there it wouldn't matter much. The union is just a shell basically. I just wish there were more to the story and not just Jace continuing to pick up passengers for his moon base.

[Dennis Zimmerman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buckle up, it's time for another amazing ride! Book 4 takes place primarily on an iced over planet that had me sitting in front of my heater to read.
Being stranded after falling out of slipspace and with a broken ship, they are forced to sit and wait hoping Titan will find them. Jace and Abigail must find out about the message they received that mentioned the lost planet Earth. Not only because of the obvious, but they also don't want that transmission notifying any unwanted visitors. What a miserable place they have found themselves, nothing but ice and freezing snow storms. Can there possibly still be people living on a planet like this? True to the series, this is one fast paced, action packed, non stop book of awesome! I had come real celebratory moments reading this one, things I have been waiting for for a long time. But also true to form... it ended, leaving me wanting. I just can't get enough of this series!

[Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jace and a few of the others are separated from the Titan due to an explosion in the slipstream. They are now off course and are exploring a snowy planet that is broadcasting a warning message from Earth. Right away they know something bad has happened in the facility. There are piles of bones lying around and destruction everywhere. After befriending the local survivors our crew must fight their way off the planet and back to the Titan before the Union can destroy their only way of escape.

This was a fun book. It had fantastic creatures and new characters. We get some more backstory on how Jace became a renegade. There is intense action and comical banter. The crew becomes more loveable and endearing with every book. Yay! I am glad there are more.

[Kate Rhoads · Rating 3 out of 5]

nearly lost me

It was a bit sloppy and rushed in the build up towards the final resolution. The plot seem to have been sacrificed for more action. Things were admitted that should’ve been left out and things that should’ve been explained were lacking. The ending was so predictable and yet so blatantly ignored as a solution to the point that the main characters seemed stupid. I nearly gave up the book. But I soldiered on and the author got to where she wanted to go for the ending. I am invested in these characters and will go onto the next book. But as with a lot of books that continue beyond three or four sequels I hope there’s not a whole lot of filler and superficial plotting.

[marmarci · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me ha gustado más que el anterior. Este es bastante más entretenido, además de que tira más en la línea de historias de aventuras.

Aunque tiene un argumento bastante sencillo, el libro tiene un ritmo tan constante que no se hace aburrido en ningún momento.

Eso sí, por lo que veo, el esquema de los finales de estos libros es siempre el mismo. No estaría mal que variara un poco en los siguientes libros. Ya lo veremos (que escritos están ya).

Como siempre el narrador, Juan Magraner, de diez.

Entretenido y que me ha amenizado maravillosamente un par de tardes de pintura y recados.

[Frances Law · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lost

The Renegade Star has been forcibly ejected from a slipstream tunnel and found itself in an isolated solar system. Jace sees an ice planet in the ‘goldilocks’ zone and decides to investigate after hearing earth mentioned in a warning message. What he finds on the planet is horrifying in some ways and miraculous in others. Of course the Union are hot on his tail so it’s one crisis after another.

[Jordan Encee · Rating 5 out of 5]

There always has to be an ice planet in sci-fi. Same as before, building upon Earth's lore and Jace and the gang being, well, Jace and the gang. It even had a nice little romance going on that's been building since the first book. Also, my favorite part of this book was learning what language they all speak. Its called: Common E. I love that! It's so simple and funny at the same time! Classic J.N Chaney right there!

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars. Audible Version. This book was in a 2 book Publisher's pack from Audible. Great series, non-stop fun and action. I enjoy the candor of the Captain and his growing crew. Very well paced, characters are likeable and work well together. Narration is great, unique voice for each character and the scenes are acted out instead of just being read in a monotone voice.

[David Beck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jace and posse have their mission to Earth interrupted and stumble across a group of survivors of the original exodus of transients/eternals to space. Jace and his friends help the survivors overcome some deadly problems and again put their collective foots up the rear of the Union and others who are desperate to regain the girl Lex.

[Marie M Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best on yet!

Love these books. They are fast paced and fun. Jace, the main character is sarcastic and kind hearted, tho he claims to be cold blooded theif, he's a softy underneath the tough exterior. The supporting staff is great and the tech is getting stronger. Can't wait to read the next one.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun

I love this series, I would have given it 5 stars but I know it is not "To Kill A Mockingbird" but it is a fun read. Full of adventure with strange and not so strange new creatures and civilizations. Good vs evil is ever present and some romance and compassion to round it out.

[Saul Baisley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gets better and better

Finding themselves stranded on an icy world without the ability to return to Titan, or even know where Titan had travels to, The the characters must try to survive. But the icy world they find themselves on has many secrets, both intriguing and deadly. Reading we learn more of earths part and the eternals who ruled it. Definitely a good read.